# Humidor Temp/Humidity ranges



## jval7403 (Sep 21, 2013)

Hi everyone, I recently decided to start owning and storing my own cigars to enjoy whenever instead of just buying one for special occasions. I bought a nice glass top 50 count humi, came with an analog hygro but I bought a digital hygro/therm instead. The humi came with floral foam which I'm using for now (got beads on the way) and in the 3 weeks that I've owned the humidor, first 2 weeks were spent seasoning I've noticed my levels were steady at 75% with a temp of 70, but last weekend I added in 22 cigars and now I see the hygro/therm reads 73/68. My question is, is that a good level to be at? I keep reading all these things about whats right who's wrong which color is down how is come up, basically I'm confused. I had one person tell me humidity and the temp can be anywhere from 65 to 75 and the cigars will be just fine.

Should I try to lower the Humidity and/or the temp? Also, cellophane, should it be left on the cigars or take them out and just let them sit in the humidor and skinny dip? Both of these questions I'm sure have been answered a million and one times so for that I'm sorry for asking again.

Thanks in advance.

If anyone is wondering the cigars, mostly gifts from others and I few I picked up, Rocky Patel (3), Dominique(1), R&J (5), 5 Vegas (2) Monticristo (1), Macanudo (3) and the rest are just local cigar shop hand rolled mild cigars.


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## wrx04 (Apr 1, 2012)

Joe, you are on the right track and ask some good questions. I was in your shoes just over a year ago, and puff was an incredible learning source. If you read the posts on the forum, you will find in depth answers to all the questions you've asked (and much more). I will give a few quick responses here based on my experience to get you started.

1. Be wary of glass top humidors (unless it is a _very_ high end unit). They tend to leak and it is difficult to hold a stable rh with them. They may look good and you may think it is a solid humi, but be careful. A tupperware container may serve you better unless you invest in a quality all wood humidor.

2. Good job ditching the analog hygrometer. The digital ones are the gold standard here.

3. Most guys here use either heartfelt beads of boveda packs for their desk-top humidors. They work well, are almost maintenance free, and are relatively cheap. If these are not the "beads" you are talking about, you may want to look into them.

4. There are varying opinions on the optimal humidity/temp, but the consensus on this forum is 65%/65*. Some guys even feel their sticks burn/taste better in the 62-63%rh range. Once you get over 70* temp you risk a tobacco beetle infestation. Over 70% rh the sticks may have burn issues or taste bitter and you may get mold. Its not a huge deal now, but if you start investing more money into the hobby it is something to consider. Search for 'the science of freezing' thread.

5. I leave the cello on sticks...........you will have ~50/50 split on this one. Not sure it really matters.

Good luck man. Its a great hobby and the guys on this site are awesome. TONS of knowledge here and people who are willing to help. Do some reading and you will be good to go. Go to the newbie forum and introduce yourself. Also, dont be afraid to ask questions as you go.

I bet by next year you have 200 sticks, lol. I went from a 10 stick tavel humi, to a 100 count savoy desktop, to a filled newair wineador in less than a year!!!


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## Nature (Jul 30, 2012)

Many on here prefer RH a bit lower; 62-68%. Relative Humidity above 70 or so increases the chance of mold growth. Mine are typically at 64-66. 

Your temp should be fine. Where I have my humidor in the basement; the temp can seasonally vary from below 60 in the dead of winter, but is usually around 65-68 deg or occasionally up to 75 if I'm not running A/C on a warmer day in the summer. I have no issues if temps were to climb in the upper 70's though. 

The potential concern with temps around 70 or above is the possibility of tobacco beetles hatching. Not very many of us have probably dealt with these buggers first hand; but enough have; or heard of someone who has; that freezing the cigars before going into the humidor is often recommended. If this precaution is taken; temp should not really be of concern as long as it is somewhat stable (no rapid swings).


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## jval7403 (Sep 21, 2013)

Thanks guys, appreciate the help. The glasstop set me back a nice chunk of change from a local B&M it better be good lol. It came with the floral foam but the owner of the shop did recommend beads but I didn't have another $40 to spend on beads so I found the Humi-Care blue beads for like $10 and ordered them. The one guy that has given me a few sticks was the one that told me to start off with a glass top to avoid the constant opening and closing because he did say it's addicting lol. He was right I swear I look at the humi like 50 times a day like cigars are magically going to grow hahahaha. 

The freezing of the cigars is something two people have told me to do to anything that is new going in the humidor to avoid beetles in case conditions are always perfect. I have the humidor on the bottom of my closet for now because that seems to be the coolest place in the house for it. The temp has only gotten as high as 71 being there over the course of the 3 weeks I've had it but temps for the past week has been a steady 73%/68*, although this morning the temp was 64 the humidity has been dead on 73%.

I have been thinking about buying a cooler and putting the humidor in there. And Chad (WRX04) I'm already looking into a 150-200 count desktop tower lol.


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

Just a couple of tid bits of advice I have to offer.
While I try to support local B&Ms with a few purchases here and there the Humis price tags are through the roof. You can usually get a premium one online for less than their bottom of the barrel.

Your temps are fine but the RH is too high by pretty much anyone's standards. The higher you go the more likely you are to develop mold. Ive also found that even at 70% most sticks will develop burn issues and a bitter acrid taste. After I went to 65% beads Ive had no burn issues at all and the bitter/acrid taste also disappeared.


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## jval7403 (Sep 21, 2013)

JustinThyme said:


> Just a couple of tid bits of advice I have to offer.
> While I try to support local B&Ms with a few purchases here and there the Humis price tags are through the roof. You can usually get a premium one online for less than their bottom of the barrel.
> 
> Your temps are fine but the RH is too high by pretty much anyone's standards. The higher you go the more likely you are to develop mold. Ive also found that even at 70% most sticks will develop burn issues and a bitter acrid taste. After I went to 65% beads Ive had no burn issues at all and the bitter/acrid taste also disappeared.


So what should I do now to lower the humidity?? Take the foam humidifier out until it drops to 65-68% and then put the beads in??
Yeah the humidor I bought was $160 I found it online now for anywhere from $35-$70 depending on the site.  oh well he did through me one 5 Vegas Gold, two Romeo's, and a cutter for free (or at least that is kind of how I'm looking at it)


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## JustinThyme (Jun 17, 2013)

If you put the beads in they will pull it down. Two way humidification devices regulate also. Sometimes when the ambient humidity is so high you have to pull the beads and dry them out. If you put them in as is without charging you should be golden in a day or two.

Yeah I looked briefly at the humis in a few B&Ms around this area and actually chuckled to myself, especially the one I saw for $700 that can be had online at multiple places for $150. I understand trying to turn a profit but thats just a little greedy.


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## wrx04 (Apr 1, 2012)

If you want a legit desktop humidor look here....Waxing Moon Humidors

Or you could build a wineador for about the same price and have more room. (Look at the numerous wineador threads)

Or you could buy a giant cooler and have more room for an even cheaper price. (Look at the numerous coolidor threads)

Throw some heartfelt 65% beads in there and dont worry about anything else except buying more smokes!


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## paulb1970 (Mar 25, 2013)

JustinThyme said:


> Just a couple of tid bits of advice I have to offer.
> While I try to support local B&Ms with a few purchases here and there the Humis price tags are through the roof. You can usually get a premium one online for less than their bottom of the barrel.
> 
> yep!.....I learned this the hard waY!....I see 100 counts for $10 more than I paid for my 50


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## SigMike (Jul 9, 2013)

I have my humi at 74 degrees and 65% Rh. I have not had any issues with pests. I would love to lower the temp, but TX summers are hot as hell and 74 is what we keep our house. I think that if you get the Rh down, you will really enjoy your cigars more. My B&M told me that 70% Rh was ideal and so that's what I did. I was constantly having issues with split wrappers, tight draws, and uneven burn. I converted to 65% HF beads, and it was worth every penny I paid. I have enjoyed the cigars soo much more since. 

Everyone harps on having a dialed in hygro, but I think the humidification media is as much or more important. My 65's have been dead on since I put them in. The hygro tells you when your off, but the media keeps you in that sweet spot. Media is important no matter what you choose to use, just find something that can get you down to 65%...you won't be disappointed.


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## jval7403 (Sep 21, 2013)

Thanks, you guys are great!


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## jval7403 (Sep 21, 2013)

Ok so Saturday I took out the foam humidifier and my digi therm read 73/68. After the first day without it I noticed the humidity and temp both dropped to 68/65. After 3 full days with no foam humidifier I'm seeing 65/65. Kind of weird that with no humidifier the humidity would stay so steady I got those humi-care blue beads things (they're really gel :/) but I filled them up with distilled water about 2/3 the way and I'll just keep an eye out I guess on the numbers.

While putting in the jar I did decided to grab me a stick (5 Vegas Gold) and now just enjoying this nice fall night.


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## Herf N Turf (Dec 31, 2008)

In a small desktop like you have, I'd recommend running two 65% Boveda packs. Buy a couple extra so you have a couple recharging while the other two are running the humidor. I always like Heartfelt beads and believe they work a little better than the packs, but compartively they are a LOT more expensive and take up more space. If you end up with a larger humidor, definitely invest in Heartfelt beads.

That said, I would steer you away from another humidor, based on personal experience. I bought a 30ct, then a 100ct, then a 200ct and then another 100ct. A thousand dollars later and battling ambient temperatures, I put a wineador together. The only humidor I intend to keep is a 50ct Waxingmoon to smoke from. Moral of the story, make your next purchase a large cooler, or a wine fridge. You don't have to throw a ton of money at it right away, but rather just get the wineador and some media. Use cigar boxes, which are easily harvested from about any cigar shop, either for free, or a few bucks. Once you're ready to spend more money, commission some drawers and/or shelves from "Wineador" (Forrest), or Waxingmoon (Ed).

For the Wine cellar, most of us go with a 28 bottle unit. That's always been the go-to size, so drawer makers are most geared to it. Go to Compact Appliance and sign up for notifications on when "open box" sales occur. I got my Edgestar 28 for $120 shipped and it only took a couple months to hit the sale.

Good luck.


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